Trusting
by ILoveCartoonz
Summary: Leo may not realize it, but his friends and family will always have his back-no matter what. K plus for most chapters, but T for others. *Caution: MoA spoilers!* The cover is NOT MINE, it was made by the awesome *FlockeInc on deviantart.
1. The Incident at Bunker Nine: Part One

**Disclaimer: Check out my profile to see the general disclaimer. While you're there, please take a look at my poll and vote! C: **

**A/N: This is my first PJatO fanfic, so be sure to review so I know what I'm doing right and wrong! :3 Thanks!**

Leo shifted his gaze from the blueprints in his oily hands to the frame of the_ Argo II._ "It's not much, but at least it's progress." he said to himself. He wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand, no doubt smearing grease all over his face. _"Now, I_ _can get started on the engine."_ he thought, chugging down a whole bottle of water. He quickly discarded the empty bottle and began digging through a large pile of schematic drawings, when suddenly, he heard footsteps. And it sounded like whoever-or whatever-it was, was coming in his direction-and quickly. Leo continued shuffling through the papers, fingers closing around his trusty three-pound hammer in his tool belt-just in case. Leo drew in deep breaths, trying to ignore the fact that his stomach was growling like a monster and his heart was pounding like crazy. He felt nauseous. _"Ugh..."_ the fire-using demigod groaned, arms wrapped protectively over his stomach. He only came to realize that he was swaying when he heard pounding on the bunker entrance. Leo steadied himself and brought out his hammer, edging towards the source of the noise. "Leo?! LEO?! Are you in there?!" he heard someone shout. It sounded like...Jason. _"Still,"_ Leo reasoned, _"It could be a Cyclopes_."

"LEO?! Open up! It's just us!" The words washed over, giving him the strange desire to open up the bunker to the public. That was definitely Piper. He highly doubted Cyclopes could imitate charmspeak. Leo sighed in relief as he opened the door with a burst of flames, glad that he wouldn't have to worry about battling any monsters as worn-out as he was. Jason and Piper entered, looking at him worriedly. Leo decided to ignore the worry in their faces. "Hey, guys! What's up?" he asked, trying to sound cheery. "We brought you some lunch, since you weren't at breakfast this morning." Piper explained, holding up a pizza box. "Thanks! I was about to go to the mess hall, when you showed up." he lied. He had skipped through breakfast and lunch on purpose, using the time to work on the ship instead, but didn't want to worry them. "Dude, it's four o'clock. They stopped serving lunch at one-thirty." Jason pointed out. "Oh. I guess that time flies when you're having fun, huh?" Jason gave Leo a skeptical glance, but didn't press the matter. His two best friends looked at one another with expressions Leo didn't quite understand. Finally, after what seemed to be forever, Leo shrugged to himself and went back to the schematics, in search of the drawing showing the engine's design. He had a deadline to meet, after all-no need to waste time. Somebody pinched his arm, though, quickly bringing him back. "Ow! What was that for?" he asked, agitated_. _

_Why wouldn't they leave him alone?_

"Sorry 'bout that." Jason apologized, with a firm hand on Leo's shoulder. The son of Hephaestus was quick to accept the apology after seeing the guilty look on Jason's face. "It's okay, bro." he responded casually, "Thanks for bringing that pizza, but I should be getting back to work now if the _Argo II's_ going to be done in time." He expected Jason and Piper to leave, but neither of them budged. "No, you should be taking a break." Piper argued, obviously struggling to force back her charmspeak, "Sit down and have a slice." Leo shook his head, biting his lip. "No can do, Beauty Queen. Let me get started on the engine, then I'll take a break. Deal?" he bargained, although he already had a feeling it wouldn't do the trick. "No deal. Rest now; work later." Jason insisted. His hand was still on the mechanic's bony shoulder. "Leo...I've told you this before, and I'm going to again: You're not a machine. You need to take a break; _sit._" Leo sighed in defeat-he was too tired to keep arguing. "Yeah, I know." he grumbled, as he sat down dejectedly. Besides, the aches in his stomach only seemed to get worse after catching a whiff of the pizza. He began to stand back up to grab a towel off of a nearby table so he could wipe the grease off his hands and dig in, but quickly sat back down, due to a dizzy spell. Leo suspected if he tried to stand up again or much less, walk, he would collapse. "Hey, _umh_...Could one of you guys hand me that rug-I mean, rag-over there?" Leo always felt a bit awkward asking for even the smallest favors, but he figured it was better than passing out _oh-so-heroically_ in front of his friends. Strangely, both Piper and Jason looked pleased. "I've got it." Piper volunteered. "That table?" she asked, pointing towards a table across the room. "No, that one." Leo corrected, pointing towards a workbench by the boat's frame. Piper nodded, clearly satisfied, and walked off. Leo's stomach practically roared with hunger, growling _way_ louder than before. "Woah! Was that _your_ stomach?" Jason gawked. "Yeah," Leo brushed it off, "But, I'm fine. Probably just-" Leo stopped mid-sentence, his eyes closing. His back slumped and he began to lean forward. He would've fell out of the chair if Jason hadn't caught him. Piper approached, towel in hand. "Leo?" she gasped. The daughter of Aphrodite and Jason exchanged horrified looks.

Leo moaned, _"Ugggggghh…."_

"_LEO!"_ he heard somebody shout his name.

…

_And then he blacked out._

**So, how did I do? Remember: the more reviews, the quicker I'll get the next chapter done! Thanks for reading! XD**


	2. The Incident at Bunker Nine: Conclusion

**Disclaimer: If I were Rick Riordan, "The Mark of Athena" would already be out and there would be a book just about Leo. …I'm not Rick Riordan, so, me no own. D: (Yeah, I use emoticons all the time.) ****A/N: Sorry this took so long to post: between play practice, insane amounts of homework and a multitude of other dilemmas. (-_-) Anyhoo, thanks so much for your patience and lovely reviews! I hope this chapter was worth it! Warning: Chiron and some of the other campers might be OOC. :P**

_**Last time:**_

_The daughter of Aphrodite and Jason exchanged horrified looks. _

_Leo moaned, _"Ugggggghh…."

"LEO!"_ he heard somebody shout his name._

_And then he blacked out._

…

When Leo woke up, he was laying on a cot in a large, gloomy room illuminated with an intimidating light that made his eyes sting. "What? Where am I? The Big House?" Leo was surprised at how hoarse his voice sounded. He started to sit up, but a pair of calloused hands gripped his shoulders and pushed him back roughly. "Not so fast, tough guy." Leo jumped a little at the sudden reply. Nyssa stepped into Leo's view, with her arms crossed. _"Nyssa?"_ He thought. _"What the heck?"_ Leo cleared his throat. "Hey; what are you doing here? What am _I_ doing here? I should be working on the ship!" he retorted. Nyssa chuckled humorlessly. "Well, according to Chiron-"she stepped into view, showing off a paper with neat, loopy handwriting, "'Leo Valdez is not to leave the Big House for the next two weeks to be able to recover properly. His condition should be recorded each day by myself or a child of Apollo. In addition to this, he _must_ be monitored twenty-four, seven.' You want me to keep going?" she asked, lips twitching up into a small smirk_. "No way am I staying here for two freaking weeks_!" Leo wished to argue; but, honestly, he was just too tired to say anything. His half-sister seemed to notice his eyelids starting to drop. Nyssa's expression became grim. "I'm going to leave now, so you can get some more shut-eye. Just-" her voice cracked mid-sentence.

"Just don't try anything stupid while I'm gone." And with that, she left, leaving Leo alone to fall into a fitful sleep.

* * *

_ Leo dreamed he was somewhere underground-a cavern, maybe. He knew he was deep under the surface, because it was hard to breathe the thin, smoky air. He had a feeling he was supposed to be there, but that didn't help ease his nerves. In fact, it only frightened him more._ "Why would I ever come here?" _he asked himself, taking a few steps forward. Nothing drastic happened. He decided he would search for a way out. Leo made it about five miles before he came to a stop. His path was cut short by a seemingly bottomless pit fall of lava and steaming pieces of earth, practically melting into the fiery river._

"Hello, Leo. So nice to see you again." _An all-too-familiar voice purred in his head. _Gaea. "Get out of my head. Now." _Gaea laughed darkly. "_Now, why would I wish to do that? After all, Leo, you shall be the key to my success."_ she whispered,_ _her voice filled with the cruelty of a cat messing with its prey. _"And I'm sorry to tell you: there's nothing you can do to change your destiny, boy." _Dirt Woman just sounded delighted now, as if she were simply offering him ice cream,_ _like:_ _"Hey, if you help me destroy the gods and their children, I'll buy you a shake! Sound good?" She definitely did _not_ sound sorry. _Leo was officially terrified. "Wh-what?" _he asked, dumbfounded. Mother Earth's voice bellowed out one last laugh: a long, horrible cackle, dripping with amusement. He caught a glimpse of her from the corner of his eye-she was clad in her churning dirt robes and the veil covering her ivory face like usual, but she was much bigger this time; easily three times taller and wider than him. She shifted until she was standing right in front of him and smirked. Her lips moved this time, much to Leo's horror:_ "Until next time, son of Hephaestus."

"LEO! Leo, wake up! LEO?!"

* * *

Leo awoke and shoot up, breathing heavily. Everything was blurry-_why? _The fire-user was able to make out vague shapes and flashes of color, but nothing else. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and tried focusing on his surroundings once more. This time he could identify the shapes-which turned out to be people: Jason, Piper, Chiron and all of the ninth cabin. "What are all of you doing here?" he managed to ask. "You were screaming in your sleep. We were all really worried." Jason replied, looking down at Leo with so much compassion it made Leo want to vomit. _"I'm supposed to help Gaea destroy the world and you still care about me? I don't deserve it."_ he thought. He didn't want to give away too much-he wouldn't tell them just yet. "It was just a bad dream. No big deal." Leo assured, adding in a 'nonchalant' shrug for good measure. Leo could tell they were not convinced. Harley appeared at his side, looking at him with pleading eyes. "Wanna talk about it? It might make you feel better." He prodded his half-brother's arm, staring at Leo with an expression so full of worry that the fire-using demigod could hardly believe Harley was only eight years old. With a jolt, Leo realized as he glanced at of his friends and half-siblings, that each of them had been _worried _about him-_stressed out_, even, as he noticed the dark circles under their eyes. He had all that he'd ever wished for-and he hadn't even paid any attention to it until then. The counselor of the ninth cabin looked up, playing with his blankets absently.

"Sorry if I worried you guys. It…was nothing but a stupid nightmare. Yeah." he said lamely. There was an uncomfortable silence. Then, much to everyone's surprise, Piper came up and hugged him so tightly, Leo was sure a few of his ribs had cracked. "Don't you _ever_ scare us like that again, Valdez!" she demanded, still squeezing out of all the air in his lungs. "Piper…..can't breathe…..too tight….." he gasped and she let go right away. "Sorry. I'm just reallyglad you're okay." She apologized, stepping back with Jason at her side. "No biggie, Beauty Queen." He managed to pull together a weak smirk, though it probably looked a little forced. That earned him a few strange glances, but nobody forced him to keep talking. Apparently, Jason had decided it was his turn to speak to Leo. "Well, if you feel like talking any of us about it…." He let the offer hang, like Leo could choose what he wanted it to mean. For once-though, it seemed to be happening more often lately-Leo was speechless.

"_Wow…they really were worried about me."_ He thought, his arms and back aching where Piper had nearly suffocated him. Will from the Apollo cabin, came in with a plastic bag full of-lemon bars, maybe?-and pulled out a square. _"Oh, yeah…ambrosia."_ Leo corrected himself. Will handed the square to him. "This might help. Just don't eat too much at once." The counselor of Cabin Seven looked at him with something like pity, nodded, and then departed as quickly as he came. Leo took a bite of the ambrosia cautiously. It tasted like his mother's "famous" enchiladas that she only made an special occasions. He remembered when it was his sixth birthday, his mom asked him what he wanted for dinner and he'd replied so eagerly: "Enchiladas, enchiladas, _enchiladas! _Oh, and chocolate cake!" Then, she smiled at him and ruffled his hair, chuckling. He wanted to stuff the rest of the bar in his mouth and relive the few good memories he had, but he knew he couldn't-not if he didn't want to burn up. Begrudgingly, he allowed himself three more bites, then sat it aside. He was beginning to feel better a lot faster than he'd thought he would. Chiron cleared his throat at the back of the mob.

"I believe it's about time we leave him to rest. Come along, everyone." After a chorus of moans and groans, the crowd of campers-and Chiron-swarmed out; everyone departing except for Jason, Piper, and Nyssa. "Don't worry about a thing, Leo. If it makes you feel any better, I can bring you down some scrap metal to work with." His half-sister offered, with a small smile. Leo nodded, clearly satisfied. "Thanks, guys…for everything." He told them, shooting them meaningful glances. "It's no big deal, really. That's what friends are for, right?" Jason answered, walking out with Piper, who was grinning like a fool. Nyssa shifted her weight, eyes downcast. "So…scrap metal?" she asked hopefully. The fire-user couldn't stop himself from chuckling. "Yeah. Thanks, Nyssa." Leo thanked her, and she practically ran out to collect the metal. Leo leaned back onto a pillow and sighed with content.

_ He had to admit: his life hadn't been easy so far-and that probably wouldn't change-but he was certain he was the luckiest guy in the world. Even with his rocky past and ominous future, because he knew he had family and friends now. And they would always be there when he needed them. _

**A/N: Oh my glob, I hardly expected two reviews last time, and I got TWENTY! Thank you, thank you, thanks SO much! *glomps* Keep it up, 'kay? Seriously…I think my head's about to explode-that's how happy I am. XD **

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**These guys get virtual candy for reviewing, so review and you'll get some too! XD**


	3. The Food Fight of Camp Half-Blood

** Disclaimer: Not Rick Riordan…..just sayin'. :P**

**A/N: Thanks SO MUCH, you _wonderful_ reviewers! *glomps* As promised, here's your virtual candy! *holds out a large bowl of candy* Don't worry! You get as much of it as you want! XD Keep up the reviews, please!**

It all began when a clump of pasta and sauce landed in Annabeth's hair. _"Ah, crud."_ Leo grimaced. The daughter of Athena looked mad as Hades. Her face was turning tomato red and her gray-almost silver-eyes were filled with rage. The mess hall was silent as Leo ducked underneath the ninth table, practically praying that he was out of her line of vision. _"SHOOT!" _Leo thought, flinching inwardly. The whole room became tense and suddenly, Annabeth laughed-though it was more of a hysterical cackle, due to an apparent lack of sleep.

"Oh, it's on!" the daughter of Athena shouted, surprising everyone. She grabbed the nearest object-an apple-and hurled it across the room, where it bounced off of Clarisse's head and knocked the daughter of Ares out cold. That's when war was declared.

The Ares cabin roared with excitement and rage: "FOOD FIGHT!"

Leo only had time to think something along the lines of _"Yeah, we're toast," _before the mess hall was plunged into chaos.

...

When Chiron had left the Big House to monitor lunch, he certainly hadn't expected what he found in the mess hall. Food was everywhere-all over the floor, on the tables, or at least the ones that were still upright, and even some was stuck on the ceiling. His eyes widened with astonishment. Campers were just beginning to notice his presence, and refused to meet his gaze…except for a certain son of Hephaestus.

Leo gave Chiron a sheepish smile and a little wave as the campers pointed to him accusingly: "LEO STARTED IT!"

**A/N: Sorry it was so freakin' short! I really need to work on making chapters longer. :P I promise I'll bring in Leo's brothers in the next chapter. XD If you have a request, feel free to PM me! :D Anyhoo...reviewers get virtual lollipops this time-whatever flavor you want! C:**


	4. The Love Between Two Brothers

** Disclaimer: I own nothing, except for the plot. ;)**

** A/N: Thank you, you awesome reviewers! You guys are _so_ epic! XD *passes out lollipops to the _wonderful_ reviewers* I'm really, really, really sorry it took me so long to post this! PLEASE FORGIVE ME! D: I really, really, really hope this was worth the wait! Remember, NO SLASHHHHHHH, AND NO INCEST, EITHER. ****Also, HAPPY (BELATED) NEW YEARS, EVERYONE! **

**Now, onto the chapter! :B**

* * *

Harley was not-and never had been-a betting man…well, a betting _boy_. But, Harley was absolutely positive, _if _he was a betting boy, that he would've already placed money on the guess that Leo, being the awesome and overprotective big brother he was, was about to kill Tony. The 16-year-old jerk from the Ares cabin had pushed Harley around all week, ordering him to run errands for him and occasionally teasing the younger boy. But, this time Tony had actually _pushed_ Harley to the ground when he had refused to do another mindless task Tony was too lazy to do himself.

This is his first mistake.

His second mistake and definitely the one that he would later regret the most: he'd pushed Harley…without checking to see if Leo or the others were around. And now, not even five minutes after pushing little Harley to the ground, Tony had his back against a tree, Leo blocking any ways of escape. The fire-user was steaming…literally. His face, normally bright with one of his cheesy-but-still-completely-sincere grins, was darkened into a deep grimace and his amber eyes gleamed with hatred. Harley could even imagine flames dancing in Leo's irises, threatening to burn Tony and anyone else who messed with him or his family. Tony was shaking hard, in a similar fashion to convulsing and practically sweating buckets, that's how scared he was. Harley almost scoffed. _Tony should've seen it comin' to him! What a chicken! _

Harley wasn't generally one to gloat, either. But after seeing the fierceness and worry in his sibling's eyes, and the unrestrained terror on Tony's usually _disgustingly_ smug face, he wanted nothing more than to stand up before the rest of the camp and boast about his family.

After all, he _was _related to one of the Seven and, really, how cool was_ that?_ And more, importantly, that one of the Seven _loved him…_or so the boy hoped.

The thought had never occurred to young Harley before that moment, so he had to really ponder on the notion. Sure, they were brothers, but that didn't mean they loved each other. Harley, at least, knew he loved his older brother-_heck, everyone in their cabin did-_but he wasn't quite sure if his brother loved him back; or even if he loved any of them back. Harley opened his mouth to ask Leo's take on it, but said demigod was talking to Tony.

_"_You'd_ better stay away from _my brothers and sisters. And if you don't, then I swear to the gods and the freakin' River Styx, that you are going to wish you were just another miserable soul down in _Tartarus_. Do. You. Understand?" Leo growled, his lips curling into a lethal glare that Harley was sure would've made Nyssa proud, had she been present. His voice was soft, but firm and both Harley and Tony knew that Leo meant every single word.

Tony nodded his head frantically, too frightened by the fire-using demigod to form words. Leo nodded seriously, then stepped away form the son of Ares over to Harley. His expression softened when he faced the eight-year-old. Tony wisely chose to run away from the scene while Leo wasn't looking. "You alright? Don't need to have Will or Chiron check any injuries or anything?" Leo asked, clearly concerned. Harley gave his brother a smile.

"I'm_ fine_, bro. Thanks."

Leo ruffled the younger's hair gently, all anger apparently long forgotten."Glad to hear it, since I already promised to let you help with the ship today. Are you up for it?" Harley smirked, pleased by what he'd witnessed. His question had obviously been answered, and he hadn't even had to ask it out loud.

"You bet I am."

Meanwhile, somewhere not far away at all, the children of Ares decided that they simply _would not_ mess with any camper from Cabin Nine ever again. From then on, it was declared an unspoken rule that quickly spread throughout the entire camp.

_And this, my dear friends, is the story of how Harley, the eight-year-old demigod, realized that his brother, did indeed, love him back._

* * *

**Probably not my best ending, but I still like it enough to post it. :P Review? Any requests? This time, I'll give out virtual truffles. And not just any virtual truffles…virtual truffles made by my grandmother. And if you don't like chocolate, let me know and I'm sure we can figure out something else for me to give you. :D **

**Until next time, **

** ~ILoveCartoonz**


	5. The World Must Fall

**A/N: I'M BACKKKKKK! XD And I still don't own the "Heroes of Olympus" series. *sniffle* **

**Thanks for the reviews, guys! They're the only thing that keeps me writing, so I really appreciate them! Now, I'm going to respond to some of these reviews:**

**Sofia: First of all, THANK YOU SO FREAKING SO MUCH! You have no idea how happy your review made me! And second, I would be more than happy to include Jake in one of my chapters. I just need to figure out a way to get him in here. **

**Leorocks5 (love the name, btw): You most certainly may have a virtual caramel truffle! **** Thanks SO MUCH for the review! **

**And, Lillanna Rider: Yeah, no kidding! It was fun to write him angry. :D Thanks for the review! **

**I'd also like to thank Whimsically Awkward for writing "Fire and Storm", which was the inspiration behind this! *huggles for everyone***

**Now, without further ado, I present to you: Trusting, Chapter Two! (I know it's actually Chapter Five, but I felt like rhyming, 'kay?) Read, review/comment, and enjoy!**

* * *

"**To ****Storm**** or ****Fire****, the World must fall****."**

J*A*S*O*N,

The Prince of the Skies,

AND

P~E~R~C~Y,

The Savior of Olympus;

Together,

They are

_Storm._

They

Are

[{{PERFECT}}].

TOO [{{PERFECT}}] to

**D**

**E**

**S**

**T**

**R**

**O**

**Y**

The World.

_Storms_

Are

**POWERFUL,**

AND

OO-Uncontrollable-OO.

But _storms_ can be predicted weeks ahead.

_Storm_

Can put out the Fire.

L_E_O,

/The…Seventh…Wheel\;

He is

Fire.

He is

-Nothing-,

::Nobody::,

=E.V.I.L=

_(A DiAbLo,_

_A DeMoN)_

=E.V.I.L= enough to

**M#U#R#D#E#R**

His own Mother

_(He killed her, so why not everyone else, too?)_

Fire

Is

_D_e_a_d_l_y,

AND

U-N+P-R+E-D+I-C+T-A+B-L+E

AND

Too easy to

MANIPULATE.

Fire

Can force _Storm_ to evaporate away.

L_E_O

Is

**T**_e_**r**_r_**i**_f_**i**_e_**d**_._

He has already vaporized the _Storm._

_(__**It's ALL HIS FAULT**_

_P~E~R~C~Y AND [A:N:N:A:B:E:T:H]_

_FELL_

_Into _

**Tartarus**_**.**__)_

With

_Storm_

\|/GONE\|/

::Nobody::

Can put the

Fire

OUT.

"**To ****Storm**** or ****Fire****, ****the World must fall****."**

But without

_Storm,_

There is only

Fire.

* * *

**Thanks for reading; please review/comment! PLEASE? My birthday's coming up on the 26****th**** and if you review/comment, I won't ask for any virtual b-day presents from any of you! XD **

**Until next time, **

**~ILoveCartoonz**


	6. A Bunch of One-Word Prompts

**Disclaimer: I'm just a fangirl, unfortunately. This means I'm not involved in the ownership of the Heroes of Olympus series. Or Marvel, nor DC comics. Same goes with the song "Secrets" by One Republic. I can dream, though. :/**

**A/N: Thank you all so very much for the birthday wishes and especially for your patience! *high-five* Without them, I would've already given up on this, so again: thanks a lot. *blush* I've only managed to whip up a bunch of one-word prompts for this chapter (twenty of them, to be exact) , but next time, hopefully I'll have a **_**real **_**chapter to submit. **

**Warnings: Mentions of blood, Gaea being creepy, near-death, and death. (Fun, right?!) I'd like to think these aren't too OOC, but if they are, please. Please. **_**Please. Point it out.**_

**Sorry, one last thing: No slash is intended, but if you like slash, I suppose you could see things like that if you really wanted to. *shrug* **

(~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*)

Warm:

Frank decided that rainy days were the worst. It was _freakin' _cold out, even with Percy keeping the falling droplets from hitting them with a shield made from the offending water-and honestly, he wasn't surprised when Percy began shivering. Out of them all, though, Leo seemed to have the worst time dealing with the cold-he couldn't even conjure any fire, not even a wisp of smoke. It was a strange sight, watching Leo shiver and his teeth chatter as he gripped his army jacket, even though he was practically a walking furnace.

_Wait…a "walking furnace"?_ Frank inched closer to the Hispanic boy. Not close enough to make things uncomfortable, just near enough to be able to sense the waves of heat radiating from the smaller demigod.

Huh.

Maybe having Fire Boy around wasn't quite so bad.

Scrapbook:

Looking back on his life in a blur of colorful pages and faded photographs, reading the neat scrawl of Hazel's handwriting from many-so many-years ago, Leo knew that he wouldn't have wanted it to go any other way.

Colors:

Among the desolate gray he found himself surrounded by, the only other colors he saw in the world were the ones he held closest: flashes of vivid orange and majestic purple.

Chess:

There was a single detail that Leo understood about the game of chess: things never went well for the pawns.

Intimidate:

"Sorry, Leo," Piper smirked. "But you're just _not_ intimidating." She held back a chuckle at the agitated look Leo shot up at her. He crossed his arms, suddenly frowning with thought.

"It's my height, isn't it?" He deadpanned, with a roll of his eyes.

"Considering the fact that I'm, like, three-four?-inches taller, that would make sense. So, yeah, that's probably why."

"Gee, thanks, _Beauty Queen_, for rubbing that in."

Piper smiled warmly, retort flying out without a thought. "Anytime, _Repair Boy_."

Regret:

"_Oh, Leo, Leo, Leo…when will you learn?" _

"Wha-what? What're you-?" He stopped mid-sentence, watching how her lips curled up into the most twisted grin he'd ever seen, sadistic amusement lacing every word she purred into his ear.

"_Poor, sweet Leo. Don't you see it?" _Her disgustingly beautiful form grew, moving closer as if to engulf him, making him squirm and shake under her cold stare.

He felt no regrets about choosing to join Gaea-this way, he knew that his friends were safe and that was all that mattered to him.

Siblings:

"Say it!" Shane had a thick arm wrapped around Leo's neck, gently enough to keep from choking him, but definitely firmly enough to keep him in place. "Say 'Marvel comics are better than DC's'!"

"NEVER!" Came the passionate reply, strained slightly by the arm around his throat. "I WON'T DO IT!"

"_Fine._ I can wait all day like this, if I have to. But you will say it. Eventually."

Shane smirked, messing up Leo's curls and tightening his grasp on his "captive", who huffed at him in response. Nyssa just rolled her eyes in the background.

Secrets:

"This," Leo said, holding out…something to her, "Is an 'ear-bud'. You connect them to MP3s-you remember what those are, right?" Hazel nodded, willing Leo to continue. "You connect the ear-buds to the MP3, and put this part in your ear, so you can hear the music." The girl took the ear-bud from Leo, sticking in between her fingers, examining it. "You wanna try it out?"

Hazel nodded with a tiny grin. He stuck one of the earbuds into his pointy ear and motioned for her to do the same. She silently obeyed, marveling at how surprisingly comfortable the little device was.

"Sorry, I don't think I have anything on here you'll familiar with." Leo apologized sheepishly, tapping on his arm nervously. Hazel shrugged, brushing back a tinge of sadness easily.

"It's alright. I didn't think you would. But I'm sure you've got something on there I'll like." She offered, not wanting to upset Leo over something so petty.

His free hand held up what she assumed was his music player and pressed a wide, flat button-the "play/pause" button, she remembered from their lesson last week. She suddenly heard a distant _click_ and then there were a few painful moments of quiet.

The first thing she heard was a strange noise, something energetic and soothing all at the same time, sounding in a steady rhythm. Her eyes drooped closed, eyelashes brushing her cheeks as she absorbed every note, awe building with each newborn beat.

"_I need another story…something to get off my chest. My life gets kinda boring, need something that I can confess…" _Hazel focused on the singer's voice, words blurring in her enchanted mind. _"'Till all my sleeves are stained red, from all the truth that I've said. Come by it honestly, I swear. Thought you saw me, no, I've been on the brink, so-"_ Her breath caught in her throat, waiting to be released patiently.

"_-Tell me what you want to hear, something that were like those years. Sick of all the insincere, so I'm gonna give all my secrets away…"_

She opened her eyes, a bit hesitantly, exhaling sharply. Leo's head hung down, swaying with the lyrics. She shook his shoulder, willing him to look up at her. Their eyes met-golden colliding with chocolate-and nothing needed to be said.

Hazel was satisfied, so she let her eyes close again.

"_This time, don't need another perfect line, don't care if critics ever jump in line. I'm gonna give all my secrets away…" _

Understand:

Nico shot Leo the darkest glare he'd ever seen, finger pointed in accusation.

"You…you wouldn't understand what's like to lose someone you love!" The paler, younger boy spat onto the floor furiously, still staring at his unlikely companion.

Leo sat down next to him cautiously, making sure he left a decent distance in between them and looked down. He ignored how Nico's brow softened for half a second before furrowing once more with his usual scowl.

"You'd be surprised."

Shield:

Mimas drew closer, heat drifting from his very presence in monstrous waves. Smirking, the giant looked down at the seven as if he were studying an especially interesting insect. Leo stepped towards Mimas, hoping nobody heard it when he made an oh-so-heroic whimpering sound. The amused smile of the giant grew wider, crueler.

"_You _are the son of Hephaestus?" He asked slyly, focusing his gaze entirely on Leo now. "I must say, I imagined you…larger." Mimas inhaled intensely, and then fire-tides made from blue flames-erupted from the monster's mouth, blowing it their way effortlessly.

Jason and Frank held their girlfriends tightly, as they floated above and away from the incoming inferno. Percy and Annabeth stood helplessly, faces turning shocked when Leo jumped in front of them. The flames bounced off of him harmlessly, not even as painful as a mere paper cut.

The fire-user came forward again, this time angry instead of afraid.

"Bring it on, Ugly!" he charged, thin body ablaze.

Perfect:

The look on Mary-Sue's face was seriously creeping him out, to put it very mildly.

"Um, _why_ exactly are you…uh, staring at me?"

She giggled in the most annoyingly perfect way possible.

"Quit being so _modest_, Leo! It's your eyes…they're just this beautiful amber color! It's amazing!" She chirped, wide azure orbs fluttering and pale skin turning a cute pink hue with a blush. She leaned in, almost like a cat cornering their prey, with her long curly auburn hair swishing in the gentle winds.

"Do you happen to be single, Leo?" She asked, a little _too _innocently.

Leo ran.

Someone that disturbingly perfect just _had_ to be evil.

Truth:

To Leo, words didn't matter when it came down to learning about someone. With words, he knew, you could lie, and cheat, and twist reality into something morbidly imaginary. Truth could come out, too, he supposed, but after everything he'd seen, he realized he should automatically assume the worst and hope for the better.

Actions, however, did matter, he knew this as well. They-actions-are what reveal the truth, even when the words dare to do the opposite.

Anniversary:

"Leo?" A surprisingly soft voice manages to seep into his cabin, the voice he absently recognizes as Jason's. "It's half past one and you haven't come out of there at all today. You _need_ to tell somebody what's wrong." Leo leans further into the mountain of pillows stacked underneath his achy neck and pulls the blankets around him closer, even though the room was the perfect temperature, as it always was. He finds he has no desire to do anything at all, not to eat, or sleep, or to even attempting standing up.

"Who _said_ there was something wrong?" The comment comes out before he can process the words, but at this point, he doesn't really care.

"Nobody," Jason promises. "I just assumed so." His voice hardens, betraying some pent-up concern. "Did I assume right?"

Leo knows his blond friend doesn't intend to sound so frustrated, but he can't hold back a wince at the harsh tone behind the door-just not today. "Not feeling so good today. Probably a flu bug. I'm fine, okay?" It's not a complete lie-Leo has a horrible migraine coming on, and his stomach lurches with the ship. He feels hot and cold and restless and so very tired, but the issue is not to be blamed on an illness. He is _not_ fine, and they both know it.

"You're sure?" There's a tap on the door, Jason making sure Leo realizes he's still around, still there if he's needed for whatever reason. There's an exhausted sigh-it sounds so gloomy, so "un-Leo-like", that it's frightening.

"No. I just don't want to talk about it now." Leo figures Jason doesn't deserve two meaningless lies all in one day. He curls into a ball underneath a mound of thin quilts, trying his very hardest to ignore the wave of nausea trying to make itself apparent.

"Well, if you change your mind…" Jason drifts off because he knows Leo understands what he's trying to convey.

"Yeah, I know." _Thanks._ Jason somehow sense the underlying message.

"Good." He responds, "Let me know if you need anything." _No problem_.

Leo doesn't protest when he hears Jason's footsteps fading away.

Darkest:

When the flames disappeared into the thin air, all become dark. And the ones who had once surrounded the fire were the ones most lost, most devastated, without their source of light.

Wounded:

It takes Leo a moment to register that he's been stabbed, his eyes turning wide as his murky mind starts to clear. He vaguely senses that his knees buckle underneath him and send him down onto the cold dirt. Pain courses through his body, making him groan and squeeze his eyes shut. Instinctively, Leo's shaky hands reach blindly for the gash, only to be stopped by smaller, smoother fingers.

"Don't touch it, okay? Just don't touch it." The voice is soft and soothing and so very convincing. Leo opens his eyes half-way tiredly.

"P-Piper?" Gods, is that _his_ voice?

"Yeah," she whispers. "Just me." Her multi-colored orbs are moist, much to Leo's shock, and scared, but her voice stays calm and clear, although it is gentler than usual.

He feels the blood flowing down his side now and if it didn't hurt so much, he'd be disgusted. "'K-kay.' He grunts, trying to pry his fingers out of Piper's, although it's useless since her grip is too tight. He's about to ask where the others are, but the desire to black out is much more tempting. He can tell he's about to lose consciousness-

"-No, Leo. You can't pass out now." Piper says, leaning over him to reach his other side-the one where he was stabbed-to reach the injury. "You _can't_ and you _won't_, you hear me?" Her free hand meets his side, pressing down on it, hard. The agony is unbearable now, and Leo simply wishes he could go ahead and pass out already. But he can't, because he's just not strong enough to resist Piper's charmspeak. He settles with a choked yelp, finding that trying to do anything other than that is far too exhausting. "See, you're doing good. Stay awake, and it'll be okay." She tells him, holding Leo's trembling hand in her own.

By the time the others arrive, Leo has already given into the darkness-not dead, but _dying_-and Piper, with tears running down her cheeks, just sits and grips his hand tighter every passing minute.

Haunted:

The color red used to be his favorite-

_Scarlet flames burning away his mother, painful screams tearing from the depths of young Leo's raw throat and numbing his lungs…_

_Wet bloodshot eyes reflected in a crude, broken mirror. His fist, bruised and cut, backed up from the falling shards, shivering. His first night in his first foster home, defined by the number of tears in every wail…_

_Crimson liquid dripping down his side, an almost fatal wound that he figures is only karma for all the messes he's made when he looks back on it…_

_The ruby color blinding his vision right before he gives into the feral want_-need-_to destroy, destroy,_ destroy everything and everyone around, _bestowing a portion of pent-of pain on those who deserve it no more than he had when he was eight… _

-But now, it just haunts him.

Smile:

It's not Leo's jokes that make them smile-everyone knows that his jokes are cheesier than cheese itself, and that's saying something-but simply that he tries to lighten their burdens, even if it meant adding more weight on his shoulders. He'd just take it with a feigned smile and a sarcastic comment, anyways.

Memory:

Leo remembered the day after he'd left his handprints in the table surprisingly clearly. His mom-oh, bless her-she'd pulled him in close that morning, wrapping her toned arms around him. He distinctly remembered how he'd returned the embrace, inhaling her scent of grease and spice-an odd but comforting mix-as she kissed his forehead.

"Fire is in your veins, _mijo_. So no matter what you do with it…I'll always love you, my little lion." She told him, running her fingers through his dark, curly hair.

Prankster:

Leo just laughed and dashed off to the safety of the boiler room, leaving behind a raging shapeshifter, hilariously purple hair sticking up as he yelled, and said shapeshifter's flustered girlfriend, who was obviously trying to hide a giggle behind her hands.

Poke:

"POKE!" A shout behind him called, and then there was a finger jabbing his shoulder mercilessly. Jake rolled his eyes, turning to stare at his slightly younger brother.

"And what was that for?" He asked, rubbing his shoulder tenderly. Leo 'pffted' at him as if the answer was as plain as day, crossing his arms.

"Because I felt like poking someone and you happened to be the closest person. Get over it, Grumpy. Don't we have a ship to finish up?" Leo poked him again, gentler this time, and beamed.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, Captain Tool-Belt. Let's go." Jake replied throwing in a poke to Leo's arm for good measure. He rushed towards the door before Leo could say anything. Leo hadn't missed the tiny smirk Jake cracked on the way out and reminded himself to poke Jake again later.

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**Twenty one-word prompts, just for you guys. *tired sigh* Review, favorite, follow-whatever floats your boat! **

**I'mma go to bed now…*yawn***


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